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Treaty of Springbok
| date_drafted = 2 December 1900 | date_signed = 11 December 1900 | location_signed = British-occupied Springbok, Pride Empire | date_ratified = | date_sealed = 12 December 1901 | date_effective = 12 December 1900 | condition_effective = Immediate | date_expiration = None | condition_expire = | signatories = Pride Empire | parties = | depositor = (London) | language = | languages = | website = | notes = }} The Treaty of Springbok is the Instrument of Surrender of the Pride Empire to the British Empire that ended the Pride Empire front of the Second Boer War. It gave House Pride several concessions that caused controversy for being too generous. During the Empire-Republic War of South Africa, House Pride eventually used its resources that were preserved due to the Treaty of Springbok to re-establish the Pride Empire. Background The Second Boer War in its initial stages was being won by the Boer Coalition between the Transvaal Republic, Orange Free State, and Pride Empire. However by February 1900, the British colonial government in the Cape Colony was able to make a turn of events by mustering reinforcements from Australia and Canada. Pride Empire capitulated on 20 October when the combined British army captured Pride City after a month-long siege of Pride Colony. Emperor Ouroboros III and the whole of House Pride were taken as prisoners and brought to Cape Town where the terms and conditions of the surrender were negotiated. The British wanted unconditional surrender if not, only a few "personal" concessions. The Pride Empire, although recognizing that resisting surrender would be futile, fought hard to maintain a conditional surrender. Both sides politically chose to open a new protracted war to pressure each other to accept imposing demands. Remnants of the Pride Kommando fought a grueling guerrilla war against occupying British troops but were forced to halt when the British applied scorched-earth policy. During negotiations, the Pride Empire reiterated its demands: *(1) the Pride Empire surrenders to the British Empire and transfers its sovereignty over its territory and people to the British; *(2) the Pride Empire would willingly cede all occupied territories by the British as it is while remaining territories of the Pride Empire state would be recognized as private property of House Pride as an estate; *(3) ownership rights of all assets, properties, and the likes of the Greater Pride Colony subgovernments, with the exception of those not occupied by the British, shall be transferred to the British Cape Colony government with just compensation of at least two-thirds of the appraisal worth; *(4) ownership rights of all assets, properties, and the likes of the Pride Colony as well as unoccupied Greater Pride Colony subgovernments shall rest with the House Pride as private property; *(5) Pride City shall be included as private property of House Pride as part of their estate; *(6) all such transferred property of the Pride Empire state shall be preserved; *(7) no such settlements of the Pride Empire ceded or to be ceded to the British Cape Colony government shall be depopulated; *(8) citizens of the Pride Empire state shall be pardoned of any crimes deemed by the British Empire, respected as a free citizen of the British Empire, and receive no discrimination under the British Empire of which calls for necessary steps for societal reintegration in the context of the British Cape Colony; *(9) House Pride shall be released from any form of detention. On the other hand, the British held steadfast to their position of giving no compromises. Fresh hostilities however placed enough pressure for the British to reconsider the Pride Empire's demands as the other Boer Republics have not yet conceded to defeat or are even open to negotiating; the British wished for the Pride Empire's surrender to cause a domino effect over the other combatants they are facing. In the end the British agreed on a compromise of the demands in order to expedite the surrender process. Contents The actual contents of the treaty have not been displayed for public uses by either side. The only copy of the treaty being safeguarded in custody in London, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The compromised version being known simply as the "9 Clauses": *(1) Pride Empire, recognizing its defeat, ceases all forms of hostility and surrenders to the British Empire and transfers its sovereignty over its territory and people to the British Empire to be directly governed under the British Cape Colony; *(2) Pride Empire would willingly cede all of its territories to the British Empire and shall be an integral administrative division of the British Cape Colony; *(3) Ownership rights of all assets, properties, and the likes of the Pride Empire state shall be transferred to the British Cape Colony government with just compensation of at least two-thirds of the appraisal worth; *(4) House Pride may retain ownership rights of certain assets, properties, estates, and the likes of the Pride Empire state found within the limits of Pride Colony, as private property; *(5) Certain immovable properties of the Pride Empire state, so long as it was decided amenable to both parties, shall be preserved of which no changes, removal, or additions done and that ownership shall be shared between House Pride and the British Cape Colony who shall manage and have custody of such; *(6) No such settlements of the Pride Empire ceded or to be ceded to the British Cape Colony government shall be depopulated; *(7) Citizens of the Pride Empire state shall be pardoned of any crimes deemed by the British Empire, respected as a free citizen of the British Empire, and receive no discrimination under the British Empire of which calls for necessary steps for societal reintegration in the context of the British Cape Colony; *(8) All prisoners taken during the course of conflict between the Pride Empire and the British Empire shall be immediately released from any form of detention; *(9) House Pride shall agree to be exiled from the British Cape Colony willingly so long as the British Empire agrees to be responsible for the transportation costs of such an endeavor and shall annually provide House Pride a non-negotiable sum of $10,000. Ouroboros III, who was in Cape Town, did not sign the treaty, instead it was Kommisar-General Joseph Roma, Minister of War of the Pride Empire, who represented the Emperor all throughout the negotiations in Springbok that signed the surrender agreement in behalf of the Pride Empire state "in open and full protest". In the Emperor's defense, it was customary law in Pride Empire for the Emperor to rule only from the Imperial capital, Pride City; any decree made outside the limits of Pride City are unofficial and thus Ouroboros III cannot enforce a legally binding agreement if he was to sign it in Springbok. The British did not allow Ouroboros III nor any other members of House Pride to go back to Pride Empire in fear of sparking hostilities and destroying the surrender process. Effects Controversies In 1947, the British Parliament permitted House Pride to return to South Africa with the condition that they are to remain within the city limits of Cape Town only. In 22 May 1961, during peace negotiations between combatants of the Empire-Republic War of South Africa, the United Kingdom unilaterally declared that it would void the Treaty of Springbok, something that representatives including Ouroboros XX himself have been demanding the British government to do ever since the start of the war. Category:Imperial Union of the Proudlands